Atheist, Are'nt you scared?

[stratego]

I will consult the almighty wiki for an answer

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taps

I still don't get it. I'm sorry, I'm ********.

 

[The Last Conformist]

Tsh, they don't do that. These are doctors not miracle-workers

You guess why I visit a doctor rather than a miracle worker when I have medical issues.

 

[Bozo Erectus]

And the nothingness is scary.

Damn straight!

Why? You were in a state of nothingness from the moment of the Big Bang until the moment of your birth. It wasnt so bad was it?

What sort of illogic is that? No (sane) atheist believes that dying is "nothingness".

Really? Thats news to me If existence is tied to possesing physical bodies, then one who rejects spirituality would necessarily beleve that 'dying' means an end to existence.

I'm quite happy I was born. Therefore, I'd be quite unhappy if I died. I fear nothingness, because I like it here, and I don't wanna go

But if you dont remember what you were busy with in the infinite time before your physical birth, how do you know it was any worse than what youve experienced here?

 

[Gif Warrior]

I still don't get it. I'm sorry, I'm ********.

OK, I am going to assume that you really want an answer. Taps is a song played mainly on the trumper or bugel. You can hear it in movies when a military guy gets burried or the flag goes down. Oh yeah, it is an American thing.

 

[Bootstoots]

And the nothingness is scary.

Why do you find nothingness so scary? It is not as though you would be a brain floating a sea of nothingness. If there turns out to be nothing after death, you, as in your consciousness, would not exist in the first place. It would be the same as you felt before you were born: you didn't. I hope you recognize that.

As an agnostic, I hold that nothingness is a definite possibility, but obviously no option can be excluded. I'm curious by nature and somewhat look forward to perhaps finding out what happens after death, if there is an afterlife of some sort, but there is also of course a fear of the unknown in me. I am not very afraid of death itself, though I do fear dying before I have a chance to live my life to the fullest, to make it really mean something.

 

[Fox Mccloud]

Why? You were in a state of nothingness from the moment of the Big Bang until the moment of your birth. It wasnt so bad was it?

There you go! Assuming things you don't even know! So ignorant and stupid. It could've been that, or I'm reincarnated, or who knows?

 

[Damnyankee]

I still don't get it. I'm sorry, I'm ********.

For all you brits out there, it is also refered to as "Last Post"

 

[Mise]

But if you dont remember what you were busy with in the infinite time before your physical birth, how do you know it was any worse than what youve experienced here?

I believe that there was nothing before my birth, and nothing after my death. When I die, there will be nothing; I will feel nothing, experience nothing, and be busy with..... nothing. I won't be sentient to even know what that "feels" like. I value greatly my sentience; losing something that so defines me would be the worst thing ever. That I wouldn't even be able to compare my non-existence with my life experience is the very thing that scares me most about death.

 

[The Last Conformist]

Really? Thats news to me If existence is tied to possesing physical bodies, then one who rejects spirituality would necessarily beleve that 'dying' means an end to existence.

Dying is the process by which life ends. It's commonly pretty painful. No sane person can deny the reality of physical death.

 

[punkbass2000]

Dying is the process by which life ends. It's commonly pretty painful. No sane person can deny the reality of physical death.

Personnally, I think most people do deny the reality of physical death. As much as most generally accept, I kinda think a lot of people don't really believe they're going to die. Especially in this day and age, I think they belief that immortality will be "invented" during one's lifetime may be common.

 

[Bozo Erectus]

There you go! Assuming things you don't even know! So ignorant and stupid. It could've been that, or I'm reincarnated, or who knows?

Youn mean me? What am I assuming?

I believe that there was nothing before my birth, and nothing after my death. When I die, there will be nothing; I will feel nothing, experience nothing, and be busy with..... nothing. I won't be sentient to even know what that "feels" like. I value greatly my sentience; losing something that so defines me would be the worst thing ever. That I wouldn't even be able to compare my non-existence with my life experience is the very thing that scares me most about death.

But assuming theres no afterlife, you of course wouldnt be aware that you cant compare anything.

Dying is the process by which life ends. It's commonly pretty painful. No sane person can deny the reality of physical death.

Dying is the process by which the physical body ceases to exist, yes. If one doesnt believe in a soul, then this process of course seems even more unpleasant than it already is.

 

[The Last Conformist]

Personnally, I think most people do deny the reality of physical death.

What most people think is no guide to what sane people think.

As much as most generally accept, I kinda think a lot of people don't really believe they're going to die. Especially in this day and age, I think they belief that immortality will be "invented" during one's lifetime may be common.

If ageing be defeated, you'll be killed off by a falling cupboard or somthing sooner or later anyway.

 

[punkbass2000]

What most people think is no guide to what sane people think.

Well, if us box people are the standard for sane...

If ageing be defeated, you'll be killed off by a falling cupboard or somthing sooner or later anyway.

Only if you're lucky

 

[The Last Conformist]

Dying is the process by which the physical body ceases to exist, yes. If one doesnt believe in a soul, then this process of course seems even more unpleasant than it already is.

Does it? As said; I'm afraid of dying, but I'm not afraid of what comes after death.

It may be noted that I lost faith in afterlife before I lost faith in God.

 

[klopolov]

There you go! Assuming things you don't even know! So ignorant and stupid. It could've been that, or I'm reincarnated, or who knows?

And that's not flaming? Do you not assume things you don't know? Trust me, you do, and not just the whole religious jumbo... You assume things, those who assume things are ignorant and stupid, draw your conclusion...

Stop saying it's made up!! There have been people who "passed out" then went to heavenly good places, so that counts as evidence, even if it may be lying. Why can't atheist be more tolerant!

You really gotta calm down a bit...
I "pass out" every night when I go to sleep, do I go to heavenly places, or does my subconcience takes control and shows me what we call "dreams"? Do a little research and make sure not to assume anything, we know that's a bad thing... There have also been people who have been kidnaped and molested by aliens, people who saw bigfoot, people who can talk to the dead, people who can see the future... That proves nothing, however it is a rather well acknowledged fact that mankind has allways looked for some explanation of how the world worked. Before the well developed science and scientific methods of finding out what is going on out there were developed, people used to "blame" everything they could not explain on the "gods". There was a belief (and evidently still is) that there is something more powerfull and omnipotent out there and if something happens it's because that being made it happen.
Obviously the biggest mystery they had was what happens when one of them stops breathing, moving, living... They could have made up the concept of an afterlife to make themselves feel better, to have something to look forward to. Life was not very easy for the majority of the people back before all known comforts of society were invented and easily available and to have this shining beacon of hope in front of you would definately make it somewhat better. It could have been made up for the purposes of keeping an order in the society. Think along the lines of "Thou shall not kill...steal..." with the punishment and a reward promised for the appropriate behavior...

Why can't Christians be a little more open minded?
Forget your whole religious background and think about this whole thing for a moment, if you put enough effort into it, you will see how it makes perfect sense...

 

[stratego]

OK, I am going to assume that you really want an answer. Taps is a song played mainly on the trumper or bugel. You can hear it in movies when a military guy gets burried or the flag goes down. Oh yeah, it is an American thing.

I still don't get it. What does taps have to do with my post?

 

[punkbass2000]

I question your right to be in the witty coalition...

 

[stratego]

I question your right to be in the witty coalition...

I started the damn thing, of course I get to be in it even if I'm not witty. Thunderfall is a member of CFC even though he never post here.

 

[King Alexander]

I worked with Jesus (and many other Mexicans ) in McDonalds when I was 15,...

Wow!!! Jesus was a Mexican working on McDonalds? Hmm, every day I learn something new - Which interpretation of the Bible is saying that???(j/k)

Creatures with 2 legs, 3 legs, 4 legs..., 40 legs don't want to die but to live: it's the natural instinct for survival.
I don't want to die, but all things have an end(must have an end, it's the law of the universe): the thing that I certainly don't want is to be unable to take care of myself -I don't want others to take care of me.

 

[YNCS]

The concept of Heaven is perplexing to me. Imagination has never managed to build a serviceable Heaven. The Islamic Heaven has its houris, ever available and ever virginal, so that it becomes an eternal whore house. The Norse Heaven has its heroes feasting at Valhalla and fighting each other between meals, so that it becomes an eternal restaurant and battlefield. The Christian Heaven is usually pictured as a place where everyone has a halo and plunks a harp in order to sing unending hymns of praise to God.

What human being with a modicum of intelligence could stand any such Heavens, or the others that people have invented, for very long? Where is there a heaven with opportunities for reading, for exploring, for interesting conversation, for scientific investigation? I've never heard of one.

If you read John Milton's Paradise Lost you find that his Heaven is described as an eternal sing-along of praise to God. It is no wonder that one-third of the angels rebelled. When they were cast down into Hell, they then engaged in intellectual exercises (read the poem if you don't believe me). Hell or not, they were better off. When I read it, I sympathized strongly with Milton's Satan and considered him the hero of the epic, whether Milton intended that or not.